COUNTRY
Sugarland
"Enjoy the Ride." Mercury. 11 tracks.
Grade: B+

Steve Lowry/Special (ENLARGE)
Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush perform at a Nashville Carnival Kickoff to introduce Sugarland's "Enjoy the Ride."
(ENLARGE)
MOST POPULAR STORIES NY psychiatrist: Brinkley, Cook need therapy Scalpers ask $1,500 for free Bon Jovi concert Drew Barrymore and Justin Long end relationship McConaughey, girlfriend welcome baby boy Original Village People policeman in hospital
EMAIL THIS PRINT THIS MOST POPULAR
RELATED LINKS: • In whirl of success, Sugarland aims to fly even higher • Audio: Sugarland enjoys the ride

Several decades back, Sugarland would have been filed under pop-rock. Times change, and so does the sound of music. The thunderous drums, the soaring vocals and the cushiony bed of guitars that drive the Atlanta duo's second album make it quintessential mainstream country in 2006.

That isn't what makes Sugarland special, though. That distinction goes to the powerhouse voice of Jennifer Nettles. The production is slick and the arrangements as densely packed with candied goodness as a jelly doughnut, but Nettles' voice cuts through it like a razor-sharp knife. It's even better when she doesn't have to battle the backing track on the mostly acoustic heartbreaker "Stay."

"Enjoy the Ride" is country music's feel-good record of the year. Through rain dampens "One Blue Sky" and "April Showers," the album is a joyous statement of determination and a celebration that's downright inspirational. It should have no trouble matching the 2 million-plus sales of debut "Twice the Speed of Life," and there's no reason it can't surpass it. It's a superior album.

Despite the departure of founding member Kristen Hall in the space between albums, it sounds like Nettles and bandmate Kristian Bush have their happy ending. Success was a long time coming for these hardworking musicians and it seems to agree with them. "Enjoy the Ride" might be the most appropriately titled album of 2006.

— Shane Harrison

• Also out today: Josh Groban, "Awake"; ODB, "A Son Unique"; Bowling for Soup, "The Great Burrito Extortion Case"; Dionne Warwick, "My Friends and Me"; and Alejandro Sanz, "El Tren de Los Momentos."